The Darkness Comes
by Ryujisama
Summary: The Satsui no hadou takes hold of any Shotokanryuu fighter with a strong desire to win at any cost. Akuma has accepted it. Ryu struggles to keep it at bay... How will Sakura handle it? Omigosh! Chapter 8!
1. Chapter 1

The following fanfic is just that. A fanfic. The following characters used in this fanfic are the property of CAPCOM, and do not belong to me. If they did, then CAPCOM owes me a few royalties, if you know what I'm sayin'…

--The Darkness Comes: Chapter 1--

Blackness. There was nothing else around her, but the blackness of the void. Not a spec of light could be found no matter where she looked. Not only that, but there was absolute silence. Not even the sound of her breathing could be heard. 'Where am I...?' Sakura didn't know where she was, or how she got there. But she did know she wanted to leave as soon as possible.

Thud. A sound! Not a very pleasant sound, but one the same. At least she wasn't going deaf. It wasn't the only sound she heard, though. From the void, came a brooding voice that called out to the lost school girl.

"Did you hear that, child? That was the same deafening sound when a body hits the floor. For any fighter, it is merely the sound of defeat; but for one who practices the Shotokan-ryuu, it is the sound of an assured death."

Sakura didn't like this voice, but try as she might, she couldn't speak. However, whoever she was talking to could apparently read what she was thinking.

"What I am will be revealed to you at a later time. Your words are not necessary in this place."

Thud.

"… Another life has ended prematurely... Such is the way of a martial artist… Such is the way of the Shotokan-ryuu…" What was the source of these supposed deaths? Why were they happening? Is there no escape from this nightmare? Of course! This was only a dream. A really bad dream. All Sakura had to do was wake up… but she couldn't bring herself to wake up from this dream. This dream was much more different from the others. A bright purple flame burned in front of her. Despite its brightness, there was no heat.

"The Satsui no hadou… this is the curse of those who choose to master the Shotokan-ryu… this is the fate of those who want to win… This fate… this curse… is now yours, Sakura Kasugano…! Kasugano…! Kasugano…!"

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"… Kasugano…! Sakura Kasugano! Will you please not sleep in my classroom!? This is a place of study! If you wish to sleep, do it in your dorm room!" came a loud and equally annoying voice. Sakura, opening her eyes, found herself drooling on her desk in the middle of her classroom. Wiping her face, and apologizing to her college professor, Sakura tried her best to hide in her chair, and drown out the laughs from her fellow college students. After a long, boring lecture, the school bell sounded, and the students were once again let loose on the college campus. Sakura rushed outside, and stretched herself out from underneath a large cherry blossom tree. It was spring, and the cherry blossom trees were in full bloom. Usually, the schools would allow their students time to view the beauty that is nature, but due to the recent happenings in the world, the board of education decided to cut that time down so students may focus on their studies. In other words, it was out of the question.

These days, news about terrorists and war were all that was the main discussions in the streets. Nobody seems to care for a good old-fashioned street fight. Sakura missed those days, when she'd travel the world looking for her idol, and now sensei, Ryu. If anyone got in her way when she searched for him, they'd have a go at it, bust each other up, and call it a day. Not so much anymore. She was a college student, and as such, she had to act like one, and focus more on her school work, than her foot work. Still, the occasional slime would crawl out of the wood-work to try and "cop-a-feel", but Sakura took them down easily. Not much of a challenge there. Even her long-time rival, Karin Kanzuki was more interested in other things in life than fighting with Sakura. Karin, of course, still tried to be the best at all she did, but fighting with Sakura never crossed her mind lately. Some rival she was…

"Well, I don't have classes for the rest of the day… I'll see what Ryu-sensei is doing now!" she beamed at the idea of seeing her teacher again. Over the past few years, Sakura had tried her best to get Ryu to train her. After some intense begging, she was finally able to convince him to teach her. Despite him occasionally mentioning that he still has some training of his own to do, Ryu taught Sakura all that there was to know about the Shotokan-ryu fighting style, it's history, and it's purpose. However, Sakura felt he was often leaving something out when they trained… like he was hiding something from her. Maybe it had to do with that weird dream she had in class today. Shrugging the thought, she ran at top speed towards Ryu's dojo, to meet with him.

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"Not enough! You aren't putting enough weight into your kicks!"

"Yes, sensei!"

"And watch how you extend your arms when you punch!"

"Yes, sensei!"

This was normally how training sessions went at Ryu's dojo. After traveling the world since the last tournament, Ryu was able to purchase his master Gouken's old dojo, and take it for his own. Since then, he's been practicing in seclusion; that was until since he took Sakura under his wing.

"No, it's not like that! Watch me as I do it! You have to clear your mind of all thoughts when performing this technique… Take a deep breath, and focus your energy… Visualize your objective, and… Hadouken!" Ryu's signature fireball technique flew across the training ground at a training dummy, and blew it to pieces. Ryu's student opened her eyes to her amazement at the devastation such a technique caused.

"Sugoi…! That was truly amazing, Ryu-sensei! I can now see why she wanted to learn this fighting style so badly! Why, in the hands of a master such as yourself, you could easily be the strongest person in the world…!" his student said. Ryu's reaction, though, was the opposite of what she expected. A bit disappointed, Ryu looked away and said, "Strongest in the world… I haven't met anyone who could live up to such a title… not even me…"

"Oh… um… I'm sorry… I didn't mean for that to upset you so much, Ryu-sensei…"

"No… no, it's alright. I'm just rambling on now… I guess my old age is catching up to me…" he said, trying to play off his disappointment in himself with a smile. His student didn't believe him one bit, but she nodded and said nothing. Stretching his arms, he added, "Ok. That's enough for now. I'll be seeing you tomorrow then--"

"—Karin-san!?!?!" came a loud shriek from the doorway of the dojo. Sakura was standing in the doorway, completely out of breath. To her shock, her rival, Karin Kanzuki was standing in her teacher's sacred training grounds, wearing a bright red karate gi. "Why are you here!? And why is Ryu-sama teaching you!?"

"Oh my, well if it isn't, Kasugano-kun. I didn't know you were training here with Ryu-sensei as well. This is such a surprise…!" Karin said, acting as innocent as a well-paid actress.

"Whatever! You're just doing this to prove to yourself that this is one more thing you're better at than me, aren't you!?" Sakura stormed inside the dojo, being mindful to take her shoes off before entering. Karin tried her best to look shocked, and replied with, "Why of course not! I merely came here out of curiosity, and decided to join of my own free will. Is it illegal to be interested in the martial arts?"

"But you already know martial arts! And Ryu-sama said he'd only accept me! It took me forever to convince him to train me, and now he accepts you because you were curious!? What gives!?" Sakura looked towards Ryu for answers, but taking the smarter route, Ryu kept quiet. "Look! There just can't be two students here! And besides, I convinced him to take in students in the first place! I have the right to be his one and only student!"

"Now, now, Sakura-san. You shouldn't try to obstruct the path of those who wish to learn--"

"Who says that you have to be his only student!? This is his dojo, and he can choose to accept any student he pleases. I have a right to be here as well!"

"She does have a point, Sakura-san. Perhaps you can--"

"Alright, then! Let's do this! We'll both have a quick match to determine who will stay here and remain as his pupil. So as to not have a hindrance on your abilities, I'll even let you use your own fighting style. How's that sound?"

"Done! The winner shall continue their studies under Ryu-sensei, and the looser shall sever all ties with the Shotokan-ryu fighting style and go on with their lives."

"Sigh…! I'll be the referee…" Somewhat regretting he decided to accept students, Ryu shrugged and moved to the edge of the dojo. In all of his travels, he remembered it was best to not cross paths with an angry female. Besides, they wouldn't have listened to him even if he tried. Besides, how brutal could this fight be? If anything, this was similar to a sibling rivalry: just a few slaps thrown, a little name-calling, and the deed is done, right? … Right? … Wrong.

Not even announcing the start of the match, Sakura and Karin were already engaging in a fight Ryu recalled him having with Ken during their days of training. These girls were going all out.

"Take this! Shunpuu Kyaku!" Sakura shouted as she leapt into the air, spinning like a top with her leg extended. Karin only smiled, ducked and back-flipped out of the way of the technique.

"Taken… now it's your turn! Guren ken… Mujin Kyaku!" As Sakura landed from finishing her technique, Karin took a large step forward, and caught Sakura with a knee to the stomach and a high snap kick that connected with Sakura's chin, launching her skyward. She wasn't done yet. "And to follow up… Ressen Ha!" Pushing off the ground hard, Karin leapt and twirled like a ballerina in order to slam the now-airborne Sakura down with both of her hands, only to find that Sakura recovered with the attack, and aimed an open palm at Karin's face.

With a grin, Sakura shouted, "Hadouken!" and expelled a fireball similar to Ryu's towards Karin, who's only reaction was a quick block to the surprise attack. The two then met each other on the ground, assumed their fighting stances and assaulted each other once again. Ryu, watching rather than refereeing, was rather impressed with the girls' fighting skills. Sakura's moves, though off in power and sometimes range, were still very similar to those of Shotokan-ryuu, which she copied just by watching him. Karin's moves were very stiff, but they didn't lack any power or wasted energy. Karin had apparently been training as much as Sakura had, she just never revealed it. The fight lasted for an hour, with each girl exchanging blows with the other.

Eventually, the two were standing on their last legs, each one looking for a weak point in the other's defenses. Karin's stance was weakening, yet she stood firmly in place. Sakura, on the other hand, could barely stand up, but was still able to keep her defenses up. Both were impressed with how long the other has lasted, but they each knew only one would be allowed to stay here and train with Ryu.

"… and that one person… will be… me!" Sakura shouted in between breaths. However, Karin thought otherwise.

"We'll see… just who will be… standing… after this…!" Closing her eyes, Karin gathered whatever energies she had left, and initiated her last attack. "Kanzuki-ryuu… Hou Ou Ken." With a flash of speed, Karin suddenly rushed forward, and aimed a short flurry of palm strikes aimed at Sakura's chest. Not having the strength to block the full attack, Sakura took the strikes, and was smashed against the wall upon receiving the last strike. Sensing that the fight was over, Karin, feeling satisfied with herself, stood up straight, and gave her signature victory laugh. That laugh… Sakura hated that laugh… and no matter what happened, Karin would not use that laugh again… ever…

"…!" Ryu suddenly sensed something near him that he felt before. Something malevolent… something evil. This was the same feeling that came about whenever someone was tapping into the forbidden power of the Satsui no hadou. But from where? Quickly getting to his feet, Ryu scanned the room to find where the power was coming from, and finally, he laid his eyes on the fallen Sakura. '_Sakura… -san…? But she hasn't officially mastered the Shotokan-ryuu yet! This is bad…!_' he thought, and tried to formulate a plan. Usually when a Shotokan-ryuu user falls prey to the Satsui no hadou in a fight, they usually end up trying to kill the person who set them over the edge.

Ryu looked at Karin, who had stopped laughing as she saw what was happening to Sakura. Sakura had gotten to her feet, but her appearance had changed. She was surrounded with a dark aura, her skin color had darkened, and her eyes glowed with an evil power. The burning desire to kill her enemy rising within her, Sakura then changed her stance into a crouching position with her hands brought together in the same position Ryu uses when he's about to release one of his most powerful attacks.

"Karin-san! Get away!" Ryu yelled to Karin, but Karin was frozen in place with fear. She couldn't even speak. Fear had taken over her once confident form, and had turned her into a cowering statue. Meanwhile, Sakura was preparing to launch her attack. Announcing it, her voice had undergone a rather demonic tone, "_Shinkuu_…!" She began to gather energy into the palms of her hands. It crackled all over the place as she collected it. Once enough was obtained, Sakura thrusted her palms in Karin's direction, and screamed "… _Hadouken_!!!" Instead of a fireball flying towards her enemy, a beam of an evil light erupted from her palms, and had disintegrated everything in front of her. Dust and debris flew everywhere as she orchestrated the scene of utter chaos from within the confines of the dojo.

When the dust had finally cleared, Ryu was found just barely outside of the beam's radius with Karin in his arms. The shock of the entire event was too much, and she had passed out. Standing up, Ryu looked around to find his dojo in shambles, the next few mountains in the distance now had a hole in them, and Sakura was missing. Fearing the worst, Ryu set Karin down on the ground and looked in the direction of the now hollowed mountains. "Sakura… I never wanted you to bear this burden as well…"

-End-

A/N: Hiya! I kinda got tired from my other fanfic, so I've decided to change things up a bit. There were a few words above that I thought needed some explanation, so here they are:

Shotokan-ryuu – The martial art style practice by Ryu, Ken, and their many other clones in the Street Fighter games. It is an ansatsuken, meaning it's a martial art designed for assassinations and such.

Satsui no hadou – Translated this means "Surge of Murderous Intent". If you've played the game, this is the power that turns all the "shoto-clones" into their evil versions (Evil Ryu, Evil Ken, etc.). This forbidden power is what drove Akuma (as he's always in this mode) to kill his master, and what Ryu used to give Sagat that scar.

OK. That's that, and I'm getting pretty tired… if there are any errors in this, it's because I'm submitting this at 2:35 in the morning… So tired… Leave a comment!

P.S. Asterisks aren't visible on this site. It's as iff they never existed... o.o


	2. Chapter 2

The following fanfic is just that. A fanfic. The following characters used in this fanfic are the property of CAPCOM, and do not belong to me. If I did, then I'd force CAPCOM to finally release another decent 2-D fighting game…

--The Darkness Comes: Chapter 2--

It had been 2 weeks since the incident at Ryu's now-destroyed dojo. Karin, who had seen the face of death, has holed herself in her dorm room. Nobody decided to bother her since she began her retreat; rather, they were barred from entering on the account that Karin had hired one of the local Yakuza cronies as a doorman. He was a very tall bald man who had only one name: Bob. Nobody talked to Bob, Bob talked to nobody, and the world kept on spinning. Meanwhile, Ryu had explained to Sakura's professors that she had taken a leave-of-absence due to "family problems". Since her teachers weren't going to argue with the man they heard had defeated the Muay Thai champ, Sagat, they accepted the rather questionable excuse, and Ryu went on his way. With no clue as to where Sakura went, he decided to gather information the best way an ex-Street Fighter could, phone a friend.

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Meanwhile, on a highway in Seattle, Washington, a bright-red sports car was cruising down the road, going at least 80 MPH. The car belonged to American martial arts master and champion, Ken Masters. He had just finished his training session, and was on the way home with his son Mel and his pupil Sean. Taking a quick peak in the rear-view mirror, Ken could see that Sean and Mel were having a man-to-man talk about life, fighting, and being a man. Something Ken was quite sure that he should be doing instead of his student. Mel was just entering middle school, while Sean still dedicated his life to training under the Shotokan-ryuu discipline, and defeat Ken one day. They've both made great strides while training under Ken, but still had a while to go before they could consider themselves masters. As they drove, there came a ring from Ken's cell phone.

"Hello? Ken Masters, martial arts star and mentor to the future fighters of the world, speaking… Oh, Ryu! Hisashiburi! Genki desu ka? Oh, they're fine. No problems so far… Heh, yeah. Mel's getting huge. He's getting as tall as his old man when I was his age… What!? Sakura-chan!? She's… I didn't think that it was possible… Yeah, I understand… Yeah, I'll tell them… Alright… Talk to you later. " Ken hung up his cell phone with a solemn look on his face. Mel and Sean soon took notice.

"Hey, dad? What's up? Was that Uncle Ryu on the phone?"

"Yeah. He just told me some bad news…"

"What kind of bad news, dad?"

"Yeah. What's got you looking so down, master?"

Ken took a deep breath, and decided it was best to not drive while explaining this one. So at the next stop, which was a rest station, he pulled his car in, and stopped to tell them the bad news.

"WHAT!? You're stopping our lessons!?"

"But why, Dad? We were having so much fun training just a while ago… You remember that bully that was picking on everyone at school? I took him on and gave him a Hadouken up his butt!" Ken smiled a little bit, hearing that his son was making progress on one of the tougher techniques of the Shotokan-ryuu, but he shook his head and said, "Look you guys, I don't like this anymore than you do, but this is serious…"

"But, what's so bad about learning how to fight, and getting stronger, master?"

"Nothing's wrong with learning how to defend yourself… It's just… I… Look, just stop your training, and find something else to do to occupy your time, okay?"

"But Dad, I--"

"I said stop!" Ken suddenly yelled. Mel jumped behind Sean, who felt compelled to defend his training partner and his own rights to practice Shotokan-ryuu. Sean, feeling so angry, yelled at Ken in Japanese, so that Mel wouldn't be able to understand some of the curse words that came out of his mouth.

" What the hell was that about!? You don't need to jump down our throats about something we like, you know! "

" But that's just it, Sean! This is something that I can't get you two involved with! Do you really want to throw your life away so easily!? "

" Throw my life away!? Is that what you call devoting myself for all those years? Throwing my life away!? What crawled up your ass and died, huh!? "

" Damn it, Sean! You have no idea about what's going on here! Absolutely none! "

"Well, if you'd just tell us… BOTH of us, then maybe we'd understand the situation better, MASTER!" Mel, finally able to understand what the two have been yelling about, chimed back into the conversation.

"Tell us what? What's going on, Dad?" Ken closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. Perhaps telling the truth would be better than to just hide it behind an annoying façade that could destroy their family. Opening his eyes, Ken then explained to them what was the dark secret about their fighting style; about how it was accepted by Akuma, who in turn killed his master, and how it had now claimed Sakura, who was now missing. Sean listened with his mouth agape for a moment, until he finally said, "But that doesn't mean we'll be taken by the Satsui no Hadou… I mean, all we want to do is become stronger."

"And it was that attitude that led to Akuma killing his master, Gotetsu… Listen. Sean, I want you to watch Mel for a while. I'm going to help Ryu find Sakura and bring her to her senses."

"No way am I staying here, master! Sakura, though we don't quite know each other, I feel that she is a kindred spirit, in that she knows the same style as us. She's a comrade, and I'm going to help her."

"Yeah! I'm coming to, Dad!" But Mel's interjection was shot down as both Ken and Sean gave a quick "No!"

"Awwww, but why!?" he whined.

"Because you're still in school, young man! Besides, who's gonna stay here and protect mom while we're gone?"

"… I will…" Mel responded, his spirit broken.

"Hey, now. Listen, how about I bring you something back? Will that make you feel better?" Mel pouted a bit, but soon caved in to the demands and added, "… It's a start…" Glancing at his watch, Ken noticed it was getting late, and ushered the two back into his car as he sped off into the distance. As he drove, he began thinking about how he was going to break this to his wife Eliza. Sure she'd let him travel the world to participate in martial arts tournaments, but how could he explain going globe-trotting just to look for a college girl who's just gone on a rampage? They were still a ways off from Ken's home, so he assumed he'd think of something by then, and they rode off towards home.

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Meanwhile, in a dark alleyway in Shibuya, loud music, shouts of a crowd cheering, and the sound of bones breaking were emitting from a doorway with a peep-hole in it. On the other side of the door, there was an underground cage fighting ring. The usual crowds were there: thugs, punks, drunkards, hookers, and me with a lot of cash to spend on gambling, and of course the street fighters. The two currently in the ring were a couple of no-names. Guys who got into a few fights in high-school and trying to make a name for themselves in the underground. At the door stood a rather large, strangely-dressed, Mohawk-sporting black man. Birdy, apparently the bouncer of this ring, was standing with his arms crossed, surveying the area, when he heard a knock on the door.

Opening up the peep-hole, he asked, "…Password?" The response came from a devilishly-sounding, woman: "_I want to win_…" Birdy nodded, opened the door, and let in the newest batch of fresh meat. Looking down, he saw that the latest entrant was none other than Sakura. Of course, Birdy hadn't known her that well, having only seen her in a martial arts tournament a few years back, but that didn't stop him from remembering how she fought. Glancing at the guys in the ring, and back at her, he shrugged and assumed she needed the money that badly. "Ok, kid. Here are the rules of this here fight club. 1) Don't talk about the fight club, 2) The password changes every week, so if you survive tonight, and want more cash, be sure to get the new password from one of the regulars here. 3) The fights are all-out. No rules, no holds barred. Anything's legal here, even weapons and killing. 4) Always remember to have fun." He smiled after naming the last rule, as if he added it in there himself. Sakura paid no heed to him and simply made her way to the ring. The first match was near-ending with the first fighter getting his arm broken before having his face kicked against the wall. As his arm snapped, the crowd roared in approval, and the fight was over. After the fighter was dragged away, the announcer entered the ring.

"The winner: Bone Crusher! Now, who here has the guts to take on our current champion!? Anybody!? Come on! It's just one guy, here! Don't be a wimp! Come on! Come-- what the!?" The announcer, champion, and the crowd suddenly backed up as Sakura's form suddenly entered into the ring. Not sure as to how she got inside the cage with him standing in front of the door, he picked up his mike again, and continued, "We have a new challenger!!! And it's a… girl…! Well, this place will take anybody, and here's proof of it tonight! Ok, now! Our next fight: Bone Crusher vs. Strange Girl! Place your bets, cuz we're about to start now! Personally, my money's on Bone Crusher!"

As the crowd scrambled towards the betting booths, the fight was already under way. The man known as Bone Crusher was beating his chest like an overdeveloped gorilla. Overly-confident in his abilities, he made a gesture to Sakura, allowing her to take the first hit. Sakura didn't want to disappoint. The room suddenly went dark, and the entire crowd started to panic. Not sure as to what was going on, they clamored back to the ring to see if the fight was still going, but to their surprise, they found Sakura standing over the semi-lifeless corpse of Bone Crusher. Breathing deeply, a strange mark began to glow on Sakura's back. It was the kanji 'ten', and it glowed with an evil red light. The announcer was too scared to enter the ring to announce Sakura's victory. "We have a… a new champion tonight…! The Strange Girl!!" Nobody cheered for her; they didn't even make a sound. They were too scared of her power. Looking over towards the announcer, Sakura suddenly vanished and reappeared next to him. "I will retire as champion tonight… Give me my money…"

"S-s-s-sure thing…. K-k-kid…!" And the announcer retrieved it as quickly as possible. After handing Sakura her prize money, the announcer asked, "You've just won 500,000 yen by defeating our champion, what are you going to do next?"

"…"

"… um, miss?"

"… You're annoying…" The announcer and everyone in the room shirked in anticipation of some retribution, but Sakura continued. "…but if you must know, I'm going to become stronger by fighting those stronger than me… If I need more money, I'll be back." And with that, she walked out of the door, leaving a confused, scared crowd of gamblers in her wake. Birdy stared at her slack-jawed after witnessing what had happened before him. This kid was just a school girl when he first saw her at the tournament. Not a single bit of killing intent in her when she fought, and just now, she brought a grown man close to his death. What happened to her over the years?

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Later, on top of one of Japan's tallest sky scrapers, Sakura stood, watching over all that happened below her, trying to gather her thoughts. So far, she nearly killed her rival without a second thought, destroyed Ryu's new dojo, and nearly killed another man in an underground street fight. Why was she doing all these things? Sakura never wanted to do any of them, especially destroy her idol's training grounds. Something was pushing her over the edge to perform these acts. This dark power of hers was too great, and it was starting to affect the people around her. What was this power, and why was this all happening to her? The chill of the night brushed against her as she brooded about her transgressions.

"I can't believe I'm doing this… why am I acting this way? What will Ryu-sama think of me now…? Maybe I should just…" Sakura took one foot and hovered it over the edge of the building. Perhaps she would be able to redeem herself in death. Looking over the edge, Sakura saw all of the tiny lights that were cars speeding down the roads, completely oblivious to what was about to happen above them. The view was dizzying, and Sakura's foot was wavering. Just one step forward and it would all be over. "… I can't!" She brought her foot back and hugged the roof entrance, realizing what she would've done. "I can't do it…"

"Of course you can't, child…" It was that voice again! That same voice from her dream, only she was wide awake on the top of skyscraper. "Suicide is never the path a warrior should take…"

"But I'm not a warrior… I'm just… me… aren't I?"

"You will always be you, but the fact that you can fight is proof that you walk the way of a warrior. Our fighting style, the Shotokan-ryuu, was meant for warriors… It was meant to destroy… do not be surprised that you were more than capable to overtake your opponents…"

" 'Our fighting style'… Wait a minute… I know you are the voice from my dreams, but just who in the world are you? I don't even know what you look like…"

"My appearance and identity is not of importance right now… we shall meet each other soon enough, child…"

"And stop calling me 'child'! I'm in college, for your information!" She huffed at the body-less voice. "Listen… I don't want this power… it's too scary… I don't want to kill people. I just want to be stronger…"

"Death is a natural part of life, and in the path of a warrior, it is often required. You shall get accustomed to this soon…"

"I said I don't want to!"

"You do not have a choice in the matter… but if you wish to attempt to defy your chosen fate, then find me…"

Sakura, not having a response for the proposal, simply stared off into the distance. Her path, though filled with uncertainty, had been set. If she was to be able to resume what was left of her 'normal' life, then she would have to meet, and possibly confront, whoever this voice belonged to.

"… Fine."

-End-

A/N: Sakura having suicidal thoughts? … Sure, why not? I think it's normal to have one "extreme" thought every once in a while… Oh, and whenever you see " insert random text here ", then the character(s) are speaking a language around people who do not understand it (I've heard Sean is half-japanese, and since Ken trained with Ryu, I'd assume they both knew it). Oh, and did you notice the small "Fight Club" reference above? Anything you like/dislike/don't agree with? Comment away! Thanks for reading, and we'll see you in the next chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

The following fanfic is just that. A fanfic. The following characters used in this fanfic (except Toshi) are the property of CAPCOM, and do not belong to me. If I did, then life would be just as cool as "Chocolate Raaaaaaaain…" (If you don't know about that reference, then you haven't been surfing the internet hard enough.)

--The Darkness Comes: Chapter 3--

"Attention all passengers, the 12 o'clock flight for Tokyo is now boarding. Please make sure all your carry-on luggage is with you while you board the plane," came a female voice over the intercom. Sean snapped himself awake, and woke up Ken, who was snoring loud enough to fill the entire terminal.

"Master, wake up! The flight's here!" Sean tried his best to wake Ken up without being rude to his master, but found it only made him snore even louder. Feeling the stares of all the people in the terminal upon him, Sean decided to take drastic measures. "Master, your hair dye has washed out! It's turning back to its original color!"

Ken jumped up and shouted, "No, not now! I thought they said this was permanent! … Oh… the flight's here." Sean sighed, and the two boarded their flight. Sean, still feeling everyone stare at them as they boarded, apologized to everyone they walked by. Ken stared at his pupil in confusion, but paid no heed to Sean's constant apologizing.

The flight to Japan was a relatively pleasant one. Ken, not being one to settle for less than the best, had gotten them first-class tickets. Ah, first-class. Such a wonderful experience that came fully-equipped with unlimited supplies of free drinks, blockbuster movies, and beautiful geishas. Sean especially liked the geishas… Geishas…. "Sean! A martial artist must not stare!" Ken suddenly shouted as he notice Sean's eyes glaze over as he found himself lost in the doll-like beauty that was one of the geisha. Sean snapped back to reality, said "Yes, sir.", wiped the drool off of his mouth, and resumed his game of NBA Jam T. E. with a young Japanese boy named Toshi. Toshi was winning. While Sean was getting "pwned", Ken was staring outside of the window, lost in his own thoughts.

Over the course of his life, he had encountered the Satsui no Hadou on a few occasions, occasions he didn't want to relive, and never dreamed he would have to face this horror again. Just trying to make sure Akuma wouldn't go berserk and try to destroy the world, make sure Ryu doesn't become homicidal, and forcing himself to not reach that level was hard enough; but now they had to worry about anyone and everyone who trained in this martial art, for apparently all who practice Shotokan-ryuu was subject to the Satsui no Hadou, no matter what their level of training was. Even Sakura, who only began by copying their style, was subject to it. It only took a small amount of formal training to make her completely susceptible. Since that was the case, how much in danger was Sean and Mel? Would it only take one fight for them to go out of control? The thought that Ken would have to kill his own student and his only son in order to keep them from killing anyone else was a thought he never wanted to cross his mind ever again. It was going to be a long flight. Maybe some sleep would help Ken clear out his mind…or so he thought.

-----------------------------------------

Ken eyes burst open to the flash of red lights, the sound of emergency alarms, and the screams of people in total fear for their lives. The plane was loosing altitude, people were dead or dying, and there was a gaping hole in the rear of the cabin. Chaos was aboard the flight, and the source of it was soon made clear. On the further end of the plane, Sean stood on top of a pile of dead bodies, his body aglow with a dark aura. Ken undid his seatbelt and slowly approached him. Sean was completely under the influence of the Satsui no Hadou, and his body twitched as it overflowed with the utmost desire to kill. As Ken made his way towards the carnage and wreckage that lay before him, Sean sensed Ken's ki approach him and turned to face him.

"Sean? What's… what's happened to you…!?"

"Master… I've nearly perfected the hadouken now…" Sean's now soulless eyes had locked onto Ken's position as his hands had assumed the tell-tale position when a Shotokan-ryu user prepared himself for one of their strongest attacks. Ken had to think fast, or risk being disintegrated by his own pupil. He resorts to logic to try and reason with the possessed Sean.

"Sean… listen to me. If you unleash an attack that powerful on this plane, we'll both die in the explosion!"

"Die…?"

"Yeah… It'd be kinda hard to continue your training if your dead, right?" he chuckled slightly in an attempt to try to reach Sean. It didn't work.

"… Death… is a natural part in the path of a warrior, Master…" Sean had made up his mind, and began channeling his energy into his palms. "Now… let's meet each other as warriors in the next world, Master…!"

"Sean, wait!!" Ken wanted to stop him, but found that he couldn't move despite the urgency of his situation. His legs were frozen in place, but he found that his arms could still move. He had only one choice. "Sean, don't make me do this!" His palms assumed the same position that Sean's were in.

"_Messatsu_…!" The dark aura swirls around and begins to form between Sean's palms.

"… _Shinkuu_…!" Ken's palms were illuminated with a bright-blue light as he charged up for counter-attack. The combined surges of energy were more than enough to destroy the plane; but since death was assured no matter what was to happen, it seemed better to go down fighting.

"_Gou Hadouken_!!"

"_Hadouken_!!"

----------------------------------------------

"…ster! Master! Master, wake up! We've arrived!" Ken's eyes shot open to find that the plane had landed in the Tokyo airport. Looking around, he saw that the plane was still intact, and the passengers were still alive.

'_A dream…? More like a nightmare…_' The death and destruction he witnessed was all a really horrific dream… Ken hoped that it would stay that way… As they exited the terminal, and Sean and Toshi said their goodbyes, they were greeted by none other than Ryu at the baggage claim. Despite Ryu being in the same outfit Ken had seen him in since they first became friends, his face was a face Ken was more than welcome to see. "Yo, Ryu!"

"Ken, Sean! It's good to see you two again. I'm… sorry we had to meet up under these circumstances…" There was a brief silence until Ryu spoke up. "So, Sean, I hear you've been impressing Ken with your training lately..."

"Yeah. I've been busting my butt to try and surpass Master, but I've still got a way to go."

Ken sighed, "Sean, I've told you a thousand times already, while we're out in public just call me Ken, would ya?" Sean flashed Ken a confused look.

"But why, Master?

"Sean… take a look at our skin colors, and take a guess…"

"Skin color…?" This time, it was Ryu who was the confused one. Sean thought for a second, realized what Ken was talking about, and nodded his head.

"Ok, I get it… K-k-ken." He spat out Ken's name like it was painful for him to say his master's real name. Ryu, still confused about the matter, decided it was best to not dwell on it, and they left the terminal. As they left, Ryu filled them in on what had happened and what their current plan was. He told them about how Sakura had built up a reputation in underground fighting rings all over Tokyo in only a matter of days, only to leave just days before Sean and Ken had arrived. Meaning, they just missed her.

Despite their rotten luck, and the short argument as to why Ryu didn't try to stop her, they headed to Ryu's dojo, which he was able to rebuild with some financial help from Chun-li, who was providing intell from Interpol. From the looks of things, it was like it wasn't destroyed at all.

"So, Thunder-thighs herself provided the funds to rebuild this place, huh?" Ken grinned.

"Yes… _Chun-li_ was kind enough to help me out in more ways than one."

"'More ways than one'!? Heheheh… Ryu, old buddy, don't tell me you and her finally decided to--"

"OUR RELATIONSHIP is purely professional, Ken…" Ryu interjected. Ken could only laugh at how much his friend was blushing, which only made Ryu blush even more, making his face as red as his headband. After a few laughs, they decided on their game plan.

"So based on what you've told us, Sakura's built up some cash to travel around to meet up with Akuma. You really think he's calling out to her?"

"Yes… It was the same with me when I was first influenced by the Satsui no Hadou. If she's going through what I went through, she'll want answers; and the only one who can give her the answers she wants, is him.

"The man who mastered our fighting style… What will happen when we catch up with her, you guys?" Sean asked, but was answered with complete silence. Both Ken and Ryu knew what might happen, but neither hoped it would come true. Ken was the first to speak up.

"Well, either one of two things will definitely happen: 1) Sakura comes to her senses, realizes that the Satsui no Hadou is nothing to mess with, and she'll come home with us. She might even stop practicing Shotokan-ryu once she realizes the gravity of her situation. Or 2) She becomes tempted by the raw power generated by the Satsui no Hadou, and we'll have to silence her… or die trying."

"Oh…"

Ryu was next to speak. "The Satsui no Hadou always ensures death if embraced fully. Sakura had been able to avoid killing her opponents thus far because she wasn't fully under its influence. If we can somehow get to her before she gets to Akuma and is completely overtaken by its power, we might be able to avoid killing her to prevent her from killing others."

"I've… I've never killed anyone, you guys… I always thought the martial arts were supposed to be edifying for the body, mind and soul… This is just… too heavy…" Sean had never once stained his hands with the blood of others. Never did he once think that death would be involved in any way in his life, and now here he was planning with his comrades in combat on how to kill someone if the situation called for it. Ken sensed the faltering convictions in his student and turned towards him.

"Sean, listen up, because I'm only going to say this once." Ken's face was as stern as when they first received the phone call from Ryu. "What we're about to do, we were prepared to do years ago when Ryu was first drawn into this dark power. If one of us had faltered in ANY way, neither one of us would be standing here today. If the time comes for one of us to take out Sakura, despite all we've been through, we have to do what must be done. If you're not prepared to do that, you're better off staying home. Now if you are willing to go through with this, then you gotta be willing to go all the way. If not, not only will you have to be sent back home, but when I get back, I'll be dealing out some SEVERE punishment for you wasting a plane ticket to Japan!" Sean winced at the thought of the first time Ken dealt out punishment of the severe fashion. "Now… are you willing to go through with this, despite what we've just told you…?"

Sean thought long and hard about how he'd respond. This situation was to be dealt with the utmost delicacy, and he was sure that they'd need all the help they can get.

"Didn't you hear me before in Seattle, Master? Sakura's a comrade, and I won't abandon her in her time of need… I'm with you guys."

Ryu and Ken nodded towards each other, and the duo became an assured trio. Before they turned in for the night, Ryu and Ken made their way to their master's gravesite to pay their respects and pray for a safe journey. Sean went along with them, and prayed also. Come morning, their journey for Sakura's salvation would truly begin.

-End-

A/N: Sorry about my late submission, but when you're doing construction work, you tend to be too tired to focus on other things… I ran in a bit of a writer's block when it came to the dream sequence, so I apologize if it sounds a little half-baked. Well, don't feel like saying much, so I hope you enjoy this entry. As always, comments are welcome, and I'll see you… when I get the idea to start the next chapter…


	4. Chapter 4

The following fanfic is just that. A fanfic. The following characters used in this fanfic are the property of CAPCOM, and do not belong to me. If I did, then maybe I wouldn't need to go to New Orleans to get a job in construction… --;

--The Darkness Comes: Chapter 4--

"So where are we going first?" Sean said after a big yawn. The time was 6:00 a.m. and Sean wasn't much of a 'morning person'. Ken and Ryu, on the other hand were wide awake. '_I can't keep up with these two_…' he thought.

"We're going to the last place that Sakura hit up before she left Japan. According to some of the local thugs and gamblers that Ryu cough 'interrogated', she was in this one place in Shibuya." Ken explained. Sean wondering what was Ryu's definition of interrogation, looked towards Ryu's direction, who's only response was a simple crackle of his knuckles. Confirming his suspicions Sean added no further questions, and the trio headed towards the train station. Boarding the train, they each went over their plans of attack for what they should do when they get to the fight club Sakura frequented. Taking a moment to look around, Sean noticed everyone else in the train car was looking at them. In fact, a few of them were reaching for their cell phones.

"Oh, don't mind us, everyone! We're just discussing tactics for this new video game we bought recently!" he laughed nervously. Too his relief, they dropped their suspicions and he joined back in the conversation. '_Maybe we should switch to English when we're talking about this_…' After a while of planning, the announcer on the PA system came on. "Shibuya… Shibuya… Next stop, Shibuya."

"That's us, guys." Ken declared. When they left the train stop, Sean checked back to see if they were being 'monitored' as they left the train, saw nobody staring at them, and caught up with Ken and Ryu. While they walked the streets of Shibuya, they caught conversations between people asking if 'she' was going to the 'usual spot' today or not. And down a few alleys there were even posters advertising tournaments with "The Dark One" as the champ. It seems as if Sakura had gained some notoriety in the short time she racked up the cash she needed.

Eventually, after a few hours of wandering, and Sean asking a few random passersby, they were able to locate the alleyway that held the fight club's entrance. Knocking on the door, they were greeted by the opening of a peep-hole, and a deep voice asking for a password. Sean, not knowing a password was needed, looked confused and said "… Open sesame?" CLANK! The peephole slammed shut. "Well, he was rude…"

"He wasn't rude, you just weren't knocking correctly." Ken said with a smile, and slowly backed away to the side.

"Well how are you supposed to knock at a place like--" Sean cut himself off when he suddenly see Ryu slide past him, plant his foot on the door, knocking it clear off it's hinges, and knocking out the doorman. "Oh, THAT'S how you do it."

The three walked inside the darkened place to find that, to no surprise, all activity inside the building had stopped. All eyes were facing them, and not too many of them were excited to see them. A few people who noticed exactly who had walked in, were shocked, but said nothing to anyone around them. But in every occasion, there is always that one person, who just doesn't want to get with the program, and that one person stood up and yelled at the three, "Oi! Ain't one of you that guy that won that tournament in the U.S. a few years back!?" Ken, smiling at the accomplishment of his past efforts said, "Yeah that was me."

"That tournament was nothing compared to this place! In fact, I think it was rigged!" Ken raised his eyebrow at the comment, and replied, "Look, I don't need to prove how good I am. We're not even here to fight. We just wanna know where "The champ" went after her last fight here."

"You think we'd tell you anything after you just busted my door in?" came a voice from behind the three. Turning around, the bartender of all people was the one to step up to them. He was a fairly large man with a good amount of muscle on him. Judging by the way he carried himself, it seemed as though bartending wasn't his only specialty. "You boys broke my door down. And you guys are either gonna pay me back with cash, or with your hides…!"

"Look, he just told you we're not here to fight. We just want some information!"

"Well then it looks like fighting is your only option here. See around here, if somebody wants something besides a drink, they gotta fight for it. So I'll tell you what, one of you boys fights anyone here of our choosing. You win, and we'll tell you what you want to know. You loose, you pay for my door, and you get your sorry faces out of my club! … We got a deal?" Without much of a choice in the matter, an agreement was made. The three of them were to fight three of anyone who'd try their luck against them. It would be a tournament style fight, with the winner getting their just rewards. Meanwhile, the crowd in the background began taking up bets on who would win, who would loose, and who would draw first blood. Drawing straws, the three determined who would go when. Shawn was to go first, Ken second, and Ryu would bring up the rear. As Sean went to the center where the ring was, he thought about who he was to fight, and eagerly awaited his chance to show off his skills thus far. To his surprise, it was an old man who looked like he was in his late 70's.

The announcer stepped into the ring and announced the two fighters. "In the red corner, representing the newcomers, Sean Matsuda! In the blue corner, representing the community of drunks around the world, Mr. Yamada!" The crowd exchanged their cheers and boos, and after the two entered their stances, the fight began. Sean, feeling confident in his abilities, decided to make the first move. Rushing towards the old man, he stopped just short of where Mr. Yamada stood, and performed a quick roundhouse aimed at the old man's head; however, his foot ended up hitting nothing but air, and felt a sharp pain in his other foot as he fell to the ground. Mr. Yamada had dodged the attack, and countered with a sweep kick. Sean rolled to his feet, and attacked again with a series of quick jabs mixed in with a kick every now and then. But Mr. Yamada was ducking and dodging in between each attack as if he could predict them. "Why…! Can't…! I…! HIT YOU! NGH!!" Sean yelled in frustration as each attack missed its mark. Mr. Yamada merely smiled, dodged another kick, and said, "Well with you broadcasting all of your attacks, it's no wonder how I can dodge them!"

'Broadcasting…?' Sean retreated briefly and rethought his strategy. Mr. Yamada, feeling cocky, asked, "What's wrong, youngster? Can't keep up with an old man like myself?" He 'showboated' a bit, making the crowd cheer in his favor, and waited for Sean to continue his assault. "You know, I was always told to respect my elders… but your wrinkly face is an exception…! Take this!" Sean rushed the old man as he did before, and aimed a short kick to the old man's shins; but just before Mr. Yamada was about to counter the kick, Sean shifted his weight, and planted a hard kick to the side of the old man's head. "OOOOH!" The part of the crowd that betted on Sean, acknowledged the clean hit, and cheered him on. Not wanting to let up on the now-unbalanced Mr. Yamada, Sean closed in, grabbed his arm, and did an over-the-shoulder throw on him. Upon landing on the ground, there was a loud 'pop' that echoed in the ring, and Mr. Yamada yelped in great pain.

"OWWWWWWWWW!!! My back!" Mr. Yamada doubled over in the corner of the ring, hold his lower-back. Sean didn't know whether he was faking or not, but after Mr. Yamada tapped out, it was clear the victory belonged to Sean. There was an equal amount of booing and cheering from the crowd as Sean exited the ring to rejoin Ken and Ryu. Sean was exited about his win in front of his master, but Ken was quick to disapprove of his disciple's victory, as it took him too long to land a clean hit on his opponent. Still, Ken was rather glad that Sean was the victor of the match, and got ready for his fight. "I'll show you guys how it's done." He said with a smile as he headed to the ring. Ken smiled even more when it turned out that his opponent was the same guy that was heckling them earlier. "I'll show you how real fighters do things around here, pretty boy!"

"Oh, so you have some martial arts training under your belt?" Ken asked in surprise.

"Heh. Sure do! I'm a devoted martial artist of Saikyo-ryuu karate under the great master Dan Hibiki! There's no way you can beat me!"

"…! Did… did you say… Dan Hibiki? … THE Dan Hibiki…?"

"Yeah, and I'm not holding back, just cuz you won some b.s. tournament in the states!"

"Wouldn't have it any other way, pal…" The two fighters entered their stances, and awaited the start of the match. The announcer arrived in the ring, and began to announce the fighters, when Ken quickly hopped over to the announcer, whispered something in his ear, and returned to his spot on the ring. The announcer, stared at Ken for a few seconds, and continued with the introduction. "In the blue corner, representing the Saikyo-ryuu school of martial arts, Kentaro Ryuuseki! The man known as Kentaro performed an outlandish battle-cry similar to what his predecessor might've done, and the crowd shouted along with him. "And, in the red corner, representing the… cough 'Good ol' U. S. of A.', the 'rising dragon' of the states… (I can't believe I'm saying this…) Ken Masters…!" Ken performed a similar battle-cry done by his opponent, but the crowd didn't receive him as well. "Aww, come on! You people wouldn't know what a real martial artist was even if he scissor-kicked you in the back of the head!" The crowd responded by throwing bottles, beer cans, and other trash at him. After the janitor cleaned the ring a bit, the fight began between the two hot-heads. Kentaro was the first to go.

"Alright, blondie! I got some things to do, and people to see, so I'm gonna end this fight quick!" Planting his feet on the ground, Kentaro raised his arm and prepared for his final attack in the beginning of the round. "_Saikyo-ryuu Ougi...!_" The energy swelled up in his raised palm as he charged for his 'attack', while Ken made his preparations to defend himself. "Shinkuu…! Gadouken!" Like it was a baseball, Kentaro swung his arm and flung a fireball towards where Ken stood, but to everyone's (except Ken's) surprise, the fireball was moving at the speed of a snail. Ken simply walked up to it, and smacked it out of the way. "W-w-w-w-w-w-what the!?!"

"Let me show you a 'real' technique, amateur! Ken quickly closed the gap with a roll towards his opponent, and begins to execute one of his flashier moves. "Ikuze! _Shippu-Jinrai-Kyaku!!_" Ken performed a short flurry of kicks, each varying in height, and ended with a signature hurricane kick that brought both him and his opponent in the air. After Ken stopped spinning, the two fighters fell to the ground, with Ken standing as the victor, and Kentaro unconscious on the floor. The crowd fell silent to witness their favorite guy loosing, but the half that made the smart choice of betting on Ken suddenly busted into a song and cheers of joy. Ken waved to his new fans, and made his way back to his seat with his comrades. "Now THAT'S how you win a fight! HAhahaha!" Ken basked in his five minutes of glory, with Sean idolizing his teacher as always. Ryu, on the other hand, was quietly contemplating his tactics on what might be his surest way to victory with his opponent. "Come on, Sean, Lemme' buy ya' a drink! But no alcohol for you, since you're still in training…"

"But, Master…!" Sean whined. But as the two went of to celebrate early, a dark figure suddenly appeared behind Ryu, and whispered in his ears. "Don't think you'll be so lucky, Ryu. The guy you're fighting is a student from someone in your past…"

"…"

-End-

A/N: Annnnnd here we are at chapter 4! Before I get any further in this, I'd like to point out why I chose to name Ryu, Ken, Sean, etc's fighting style as Shotokan style karate, instead of Ansatsuken. Shotokan is an actual name of a fighting style, and was the first name given to the people who used that style in Street Fighter. Ansatsuken refers to ANY martial art that was developed solely for killing. For me, Ansatsuken is too broad a term to use as a name, so I chose Shotokan instead. ANYWAY, after writing these, I've gotten the sudden urge to go a few rounds in Marvel vs. Capcom a few times. Anybody else feel like a quick match? I've always used Ryu in any Street Fighter game I've played, but personally I like Elena in Street Fighter III. Something about cute girls wearing nothing but necklaces, bracelets, anklets, and a two-piece bikini kinda sits well with me, ya know? Who's student do you think will fight against Ryu in the final match? Only way to find out is to tune in to the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

The following fanfic is just that. A fanfic. The following characters used in this fanfic are the property of CAPCOM, and do not belong to me. If I did, then life would be just dandy… yeah…

--The Darkness Comes: Chapter 5--

The bar was going insane with the ruckus going on thanks to the three martial artists on a mission. Those who had bet against them were banging their heads against tables, arguing that the fights were fixed, and drinking themselves nearly to death because of the amounts of money they lost. Those who were foolish enough to bet on the three, however, couldn't be happier. Their wallets were now lined with more money than they could earn in a month, and life seemed that much brighter. Ken, celebrating their complete victory a little early, was drunk at the bar, waving an empty bottle in the air. Sean sat nervously next to him with a glass of coke in one hand, and a plate in the other to block Ken's alcohol, which was spilling all over. Kentaro, the loser of the match between himself and Ken, was at Ken's knees, begging him to teach him the ways of Shotokan-ryuu. Ken, in his drunken state, quickly promised him that he would. Sean, however casted Ken's blind promises aside as fast as Ken made them. Their leader, Ryu, was nowhere to be seen on the floor.

In the men's room, Ryu stood silently, breathing deeply as he gathered his thoughts and energies for the upcoming match. Clutching his headband tightly in his hands, he quietly asked himself a question he always asked before a match that required his full attention: "… Am I worthy of this fight…?" Without so much as a warning, there was a drunken response from the entrance of the men's room. "Has there evah been one dat you weren't, ya big softie?" Ryu could only grin after matching the voice to his sparring partner for life, Ken, who was still clutching the same bottle he was swinging around at the bar table. "You never were that much of a drinker, Ken… That still your first bottle?"

"You know… you should…. You should give yourself a lot more hic… credit than you usually do," Ken continued, ignoring Ryu's comment. "I mean…you only lost like… what…? One, two…" He started counting with his free hand before finishing his question, and when he was done, he held up three fingers. "… two fights, am I rite? So why're you pussyfootin' around for!? I mean…" He takes another swig, realizes it's empty, and starts straggling towards Ryu. "There's not a street fighter in the whole WORLD… that doesn't know the name… uh… what was your name again, Ryu? RYU! Ryu…"

"… Hoshi?"

"Yeah, that's it! Ryu Hoshi! That's what your name was…" Ken puts his arm around Ryu's shoulder, nearly toppling the two over. "Lissen ere', Ryu… I wanna… lemme, lemme… can I tell you somethin'? C-can I tell you somethin'? I… LOVE you, man!"

"Ken, you--"

"NO, no! Lemme hic lemme finish this! I love you… like a brother! In fact, you… are… the brother I've never had… And I… uh… wait a sec… Because you're my brother… I believe—NO…! I KNOW that you are gonna win, so just… just… just go with it, man! I mean, these guys were nothin' but a bunch of-- …!" Ken's "inspirational" speech was cut short when he made a quick dash for the nearest empty stall. Ryu, somehow sensing his friend's good intentions and best wishes, smiled, tightened his headband around his forehead, and left the men's room, not before asking a random person if he could watch over Ken for him, and to grab a mop. With his confidence steeled, Ryu made his way back into the screaming crowd of spectators. It was time to determine if he was indeed worthy of this fight.

---------------------------------

Meanwhile at a ranch somewhere in the U. S., a lone man was typing away on a keyboard in an empty room at the speed of a snail. With his stubby fingers and lack of dexterity from years of combat training and military service, retired general Guile was only frustrating himself even further as he tried to make the computer do what he wanted. "Damned piece of crap…! I should've just let Chun-li take care of this… I can't type nearly as fast as she can… I'm getting too old for this…" After an hour or more of keystrokes later, Guile was able to bring up the information that he was finally looking for. "About time… I have no idea why I invested in this thing in the first place," he sighed as he picked up the telephone and dialed a number.

"… Yeah, it's me…. Yeah… it took me forever, but I finally located him… yeah, Malay Island, or at least that was where he was last spotted before he destroyed the surveillance satellite… I don't know why you'd wanna track down this monster in the first place… A favor to "him", huh? Yeah, I know… I'll see about what we're gonna do about Christmas this year… Uh-huh… you to… Nah, its' fine. I wasn't really doing anything at the moment anyway. Retirement's kinda boring now that I'm actually living it… Yeah, I'll tell her you said hello. Oh, and by the way, Miss Li, next time, why don't you use Interpol's computers to help out your boyfriend for a change, huh? Yeah, whatever…. Heh heh… Talk to you later… bye." Guile hung up the phone and powered down his computer before walking towards the living room. There, he was greeted by his daughter Amy, who, like her father, was garbed in fatigues as well.

"Hey, Dad!"

"Amy! What can your old man do for ya?"

"You feel like going to the rifle range out back? I got a feeling that I can beat your score this time. I can feel it!"

"You get the ammo, I'll bring the rifles."

And the two went off to go spend some Father-daughter quality time.

----------------------------

Back at the fight club, Ryu stood in the middle of the ring, waiting for his opponent to appear before him. But the one thing he couldn't shake from his mind, was what the random messenger said to him earlier. Apparently this guy was a student of someone who fought Ryu in the past, but who exactly…? The myriad of fights Ryu had fought swirled around in his mind, but he kept his focus. He wasn't going to let his thoughts throw him off. After a few more minutes of waiting, the lights around the bar went out, only to leave the spotlight in the middle of the ring as the only source of light. It was about to start. From outside of the ring this time, the announcer announced the fighters of the last match.

"In this corner, representing the Shotokan-ryuu school of karate. A man who's truly known the distance of the world by fighting every man on every corner. A warrior in training, seeking enlightenment and strength. The man who took down Sagat, the ex-Muay Thai champ: Ryu Hoshi!!!" The crowd was a mix of its usual cheers and boos as Ryu was announced into the ring. Not letting either bother him, Ryu only opened his eyes when the announcer spoke up once more. "And in this corner, the man who made this bar possible. Owner of the Seiryu School of Thai Kickboxing, and sole disciple of Muay Thai legend, Sagat. The one, the only, Makoto Maebara!" The crowd went immediately silent, and began to part as the owner and bartender of the club made his way to the ring. Still in his bartending outfit, Makoto cracked his knuckles loudly and said, "I've got a message from my sensei… Come closer so that I can tell it to ya."

"Your sensei was a man filled with pride, and it was because of that, that he lost his title as Muay Thai champion." A low "ooooooh" came from the crowd as Ryu tried to play a head-game with Makoto, who did not take the insult well. "… Looks like the door isn't the only thing that's gonna need fixing today…" And with that, the fight was on. Ryu entered his stance and waited for his first move, but Makoto wasn't stupid. Usually the first move tended to be the worst one. So far, the fight was reduced to nothing but a staring contest. This wasn't faring well with the spectators, who all yelled in disapproval. "Hey! What the hell's this, huh!?"

"Yeah! What is this, a dance or a fight!?"

"I didn't pay to see two guys about to kiss each other, I paid to see someone get their ass kicked!" some men yelled. But it didn't matter with either of the fighters. Neither was willing to move an inch in an effort to make a mistake. It wasn't until someone had taken broken bottle and threw it at Ryu did either of them make a move. Ryu dodged the thrown bottle, which forced him to loose his footing. Makoto found an opening in Ryu's defenses, rushed towards him and planted a hard knee on Ryu's face. When the two fighter's connected, everyone cheered in approval. But soon after Makoto landed from the knee attack, Ryu followed up with a sweep kick that knocked Makoto flat on his back. Afterwards, Ryu hopped in the air, and drove his fist towards where Makoto's face was. Makoto rolled out of the way, and retreated back into his stance.

Ryu stood up just in time to find Makoto with his palms at his chest, facing each other. "This move look familiar!?" Makoto yelled, before thrusting both hands forward, releasing an orange wave of energy that flew swiftly towards Ryu. Not wanting any bystanders hurt by the attacks, Ryu countered the move by performing his Hadouken technique, effectively canceling each other out while leaving behind a cloud of dust and small remnants of energy. With all of the dust in the way, it made it hard for anyone to see who was where. Makoto couldn't pinpoint Ryu's location through the dust cloud, but his visibility would soon be restored. "_Shinku__… __Tatsumaki__Senpuu__k__yaku_!!" came Ryu's voice from within the dust cloud. And no sooner had he yelled the attack, did a sudden gust of wind start building up from within the middle of the ring. The dust immediately blew out of the ring and into the spectators, revealing Ryu, who was spinning like a top with one leg extended while he was in mid air. Everyone wouldn't have too long to stare in amazement at Ryu's technique, because Ryu then increased his rotation speed and slowly began drawing in everything and anything that was close enough to him. Those who were close enough to the ring, suddenly found themselves glued to the sides of the cage, while those who were far away enough had ducked behind the bar for cover. Makoto, who was the least fortunate, eagerly grabbed the gate of the ring, and held on for dear life as the pulling force of Ryu's Hurricane Kick grew stronger and stronger. Then, after surveying the situation a bit more, Makoto suddenly let go, and flew feet first towards Ryu's abdomen. Ryu, unable to stop the spinning in time, felt the full force of Makoto's counter in his chest, and he and everything else that was drawn to the ring, finally fell to the ground.

Ryu doubled over, pain shooting all through his chest. He grabbed his sides and moved his fingers around his stomach. "….Nngh!" A broken rib. "Augh..!" Make that two. His technique countered, and a couple of his ribs broken, Ryu was at a disadvantage he couldn't afford. Makoto, after getting to his feet, grinned at Ryu's condition, but made no effort to move in and finish Ryu off. He learned his lesson from his master who tried to do the same thing. "He was careless to try and finish off a wounded animal whose been cornered. Get up so we can finish this." Makoto said, from the other side of the ring. The audience cheered in approval, some began chanting 'Makoto the Merciful', even. Sean and Ken tried their best to cheer Ryu on, but their cries were overshadowed by that of the crowd. Ken, who was still a little drunk, began to start a fight with some of the guys at the bar for not cheering on Ryu. Sean, making sure that he wasn't in any danger himself, tried his best to restrain his master. Ryu, seeing his comrades support him, tried his best to grin through the pain in his chest and get to his feet. After a while, Ryu was finally able to stand, though he held one hand for support against the cage of the ring.

"You're right… we can't let this draw out any further… What say we end this last one in one final shot?" Ryu proposed. Makoto, a little shocked that he was still willing to fight, agreed with a simple nod. Ryu also added, "I'll even… let you gather your ki… so that we can go out with… with a bang."

"Wait a sec… you'll LET me gather my ki? You're either the greatest warrior I've fought so far, or the most suicidal. Fine… but I'm not responsible for your rehabilitation." Makoto assumed his stance and began to channel his energies into his body. Ryu, on the other hand, stabilized his body, stood with his legs apart in the 'horse' position, and closed his eyes as he released his built up ki into the earth. Ken, who had been slightly paying attention to the match, despite his drunkenness, recognized the position, and knew what was going to happen; but there were even more pressing matters to attend to. "Kentaro! Another bottle!"

"Yes, sensei!"

"Just so you know, I won't kill you with this next move, cuz I'm gonna need you alive if you're gonna pay for my door…!" Makoto jeered at Ryu, who was still in his horse stance with his eyes closed. "For those of you who still have their eyes open, you won't want to miss this…! This is my ultimate attack, _Seiryu__O__ugi_! _Kou-__Ou__Bakurtetsu__Ken_!" In the blink of an eye, Makoto launched himself across the ring where Ryu stood, his fist aglow with golden energy. Stopping just before collided into Ryu, Makoto swung his fist low and aimed an uppercut to Ryu's chin, but he only hit air. "What the--!? Where'd he-- Gauuuugh!" His question was cut off quick when he felt a sharp pain hit him squarely in his lower back. The attack came from Ryu, who performed a powerful side kick to Makoto's back, which slammed him hard into the iron gates of the ring. Completely paralyzed with pain, Makoto rolled to his stomach, cupping his lower back with his right hand.

The crowd fell completely silent. Nobody said a word, except for Ken, who was singing an Irish drinking song his dad taught him when he first returned to the states. After everyone, including the announcer had finally realized the situation, the announcer chimed in, "The winner is, Ryu Hoshi of the Shotokan-ryuu school!" The crowd immediately filled with its usual amount of jeers and cheers, and the lights were back on. With the fight over, a few of Makoto's supporters ran to his side, and helped him out of the ring. Ryu sighed with relief, and limped over towards the bar, where he was congratulated by Ken, Sean, and strangely enough, Kentaro. Kentaro, the most surprised of the group asked, "What was that technique you used!? It took him down in one shot!"

"That was a move I created a few years ago… it's called the _Shinryu__ Mori_, or True Dragon Lance. It allows me to feint an opening for my opponent so I can quickly draw up ki to my legs… and counter attack from behind." Ryu explained, in between deep breaths. Though he had won the fight, he was still hurting from his broken ribs, and that could be a problem for the team in the future. To try and alleviate the pain a bit, Ryu asked for something he might not do for a long time. "… Give me a bottle of your strongest sake, please."

-----------------------------------------------

It wasn't until a few hours later, after everyone started to leave the fight club and feeling sober again, did the trio actually get the answer to their question. "If you're looking for The Dark One, she's already left the country. In fact, this was her last stop before she left Japan for the Malay Islands." They were too late. She got the cash she needed, and was on her way to meet 'him'. However, at least they knew where she was going. "You know… you guys could've just asked one of us, and we would've told you," said Makoto from a reclining chair in the corner of the club. "You know how hard it is to find doors with the little sliding compartments on them? It's not, OW…! … easy."

"We apologize…" the trio said before leaving, but just before they left, Makoto called out to Ryu and said, "It was a good match… now I see why my sensei holds no more resentment for you."

"Your sensei was… IS and incredible fighter… if you see him again, tell him I miss the feeling of his fists." Ryu said before they left the club. Now, their leader injured, the three warriors made their way back to Ryu's home before they left for the Malay Archipelagos. They may have missed Sakura before she left Japan, but they might catch her before Akuma turned her into a killer.

-End-

A/N: Annnnd chapter 5 is finally here! I know what you're all thinking, "YOU TAKE TOO LONG TO UPDATE!!!", but I can't help it. I'm trying to get my life back on track, and just didn't have time. How'd you like Ryu's new move? I've been trying to think of new ways to incorporate new moves and make them sound like they would be moves that person would use. I'm also thinking of giving Ryu, Sean, and Ken a combination move, and giving them each another move of their own. How's my Japanese? If any of it's wrong, let me know. Thanks for reading, and I'll see you… eventually. ;


	6. Chapter 6

The following fanfic is just that. A fanfic. The following characters used in this fanfic are the property of CAPCOM, and do not belong to me. If they did, then maybe I'd get a say in who would be in Street Fighter IV…

-- The Darkness Comes: Chapter 6 –

"What do you mean the boats are delayed until tomorrow!?" Ken shouted at the boatman the trio found themselves in front of. The three martial artists were in a port town in Southeast China, looking for a boat that would take them to the Malay Archipelago; however due to what the locals called "unforeseen weather conditions", nobody was willing to take their boats out for any reason.

"I sorry! Me no sail today! Bad weather! You try tomorrow!" said the Chinese ferryman in broken English. He was trying his best to be calm, but Ken's insistency was obviously irritating him.

"Look, pal, we can cover any of the damages! See?" Ken, feeling confident in the "all-mighty" power of the American dollar, pulled out his wallet, and showed the ferryman a few hundred dollar bills; however, all that changed was the boatman's scowl, who then immediately rolled on the deck of his boat with laughter. Ken, confused at the laughter asked, "What's so funny?"

"You… ha ha.. you no read newspaper…! American dollar… no good these days…! You come back… heh heh heh… when you have _European_ money...!" he managed to say in between his fits of laughter.

"The hell're you talkin' about, old man! 'American dollar no good these days', I'll show you what's 'no good'--" Ken shouted but was carried off by Sean, who was using all of his strength to keep his sensei reserved. Even as he was dragged off the port, Ken could still be heard screaming insults and curse words at the Chinese boatman. Ryu sighed and apologized to the old man, and turned to meet up with his comrades, when he was stopped by the boat man.

"Listen. I tell you what I no tell American with bleached girl hair. Real reason why I no take you today is there is dark chi coming from islands you want go to."

"Dark… chi?"

"Yes… a very large, very dark chi that calls for another like it. Not evil, but dark."

That sounded familiar. "… Akuma…" Ryu could only breathe the name of his teacher's killer. As he stared at the distant group of islands, the old boatman spoke up and said, "… Tomorrow, I take you halfway. You swim rest of way, ok?" Ryu, understanding that this would most likely be the closest they'd get to the island by boat, nodded slowly.

"… I understand… _Do jeh_." Ryu bowed to the boatman, who bowed in return, and he left the harbor. Catching up with Ken and Sean, Ryu shared what the boatman told him, and they all agreed that they'd have to get their feet wet tomorrow. Earlier, before they entered the port town, they had found a shabby, run-down, abandoned home not too far away; upon returning to it, they fixed it up, and established it as their temporary base of operations so that they could rest up for the night. "So tomorrow is the day, huh? It's creepy… Now that I think about it, I can feel his ki from over here…" Sean said, beginning to shiver all over his body. "I can't believe a human being is capable of generating such energy by will alone…" He tossed a few more logs into the fire pit in the middle of the room to calm his 'chill'.

"Oh, it's possible, Sean. Ryu and I can attest to that. Trust me, this guy is bad news, and we're risking out lives just being this close to him… If either Ryu or I lose our concentration, we'd fall victim to the satsui no hadou as well."

"Wait a sec… I know you guys are more in danger than I am, but what about me? I mean, Sakura-san may have had more training than I did, but she's the reason we're on this mission! What if… what if I end up just like her…!? What if I turn on you guys in your sleep!? What if I--?"

Crack! From across the other side of the fire, Ken leapt over to where Sean was and clocked him hard in the face, knocking him over. Ryu, surprisingly, hadn't moved from his spot, and only sat with his eyes closed.

"That's enough of your B.S., Sean! As hard as a decision it is, we've already considered that; and if the situation arises, we'd have to take care of you too, as well as Sakura-chan; but, despite that, you wanted to come in the first place because she is our ally! We can't have any of us straying from our path to free her from this demonic power because any indecisiveness is only gonna lead us further down the path to destruction! So what we need you to do is be a man, and pull yourself together!"

Ken's voice rang throughout the entire house, and his words seemed to shake Sean's very soul, as he stared at his teacher's domineering form standing above him. Ken then turned and began to return to his seat, but continued on with his speech. "You're not the only one who's about to piss his pants right about now… Ryu and me, we saw what this guy could do first-hand…! Since he'd been laying low over the years, we were just going to leave him alone, but now that he's taken Sakura-chan… we can't just let this one go…! So keep it together, Sean! We're gonna need all the help we can get."

The room was silent for a moment, and then Sean spoke up, "… Forgive me, sensei… I will not question my resolve ever again…"

"Then it seems I won't need to knock any more sense into you, huh?" Ken turned to face Sean, and raised his fist, in approval with Sean's words. Sean got to his feet, bowed to his sensei, and the matter was resolved.

--

"What are you doing…!?" came a booming voice on an island not too far from where our heroes were lodging for the night. "Where is your drive to fight…? Where is your resolve!?" Thwack! A dark man with a crimson-red topknot hairstyle stood over a body he'd just kicked over. The body was none other than Sakura, herself. Instead of the usual fighting garb of her old high school sailor fuku, she was wearing a dark-colored karate gi just as her new sensei wore; her forearms were wrapped in makeshift bandages, but she still wore her traditional sparring gloves, which had seen better days due to extreme use. Sakura was doubled over from exhaustion, yet despite Akuma's powerful attacks, her body didn't feel much pain. Perhaps the side-effects of the satsui no hadou was dulling her ability to feel pain. Slowly getting to her feet, she protested, "Cut me some slack, alright! We've been training for a week straight! I'm tired, and I need rest!"

"A warrior does not NEED rest…! Now you WILL get up, and you WILL show me your resolve to fight, NOW!" Akuma's soulless eyes glowed as he raised his arm high into the air, gathered his ki, and brought his hand down with such force, that the very ground where he once stood cratered and jagged rocks began to form all around him as he pounded the earth with his _Kongo Kokuretsu Zan_ technique. To his surprise, Sakura's body was nowhere to be found, but he didn't have to wonder where she was for long. Just as he got to his feet, he instinctively raised his hand just in time to meet Sakura's foot and parry her roundhouse kick. Sakura, who had apparently teleported for a surprised attack, wasn't finished. Using what remaining momentum she had left from her kick, she kicked off the ground and combo'ed from a Hurricane Kick into a mid-air _Shakunetsu Hadouken_. Akuma merely evaded each kick as they rotated towards his head, and when the flaming ball came to his face, he brought his hand forward, and in an attempt to show how weak Sakura was, he crushed the ball of blazing energy inside his hand, and knocked her away with a powerful palm thrust to her face. . "Humph… you're still not fierce enough! If you want to become as strong as me, you must not be afraid to kill your opponent!" Unsatisfied with Sakura's performance, he then assumed a crouching stance and began gathering his ki. By doing so, his body turned as black as the night sky around them, and he began glowing with a crimson aura, as if he'd become the embodiment of all negative forces in the world.

"Once you've become a true warrior, your power should only be made to crush your opponents. There are no second chances, there is no room for weakness, and there is no time for compassion… only your fists are what's important!" Akuma's speech gave Sakura enough time to get to her feet, and attempt to defend herself. She knew this attack, in fact she had done it a few times herself, but she feared its effects were going to be far more severe in the hands of someone who truly mastered their fighting style. Perhaps if she could calm herself down, she'd be able to anticipate what exactly happens during this move. Taking deep breaths, Sakura had slowed down her heart rate, and her focus had increased. She just had to focus on where and when the attack was coming from, and what exactly happens to the ones on the receiving end of the attack. Meanwhile, Akuma had just finished gathering his ki, and was ready to execute his attack.

"Prepare yourself…!" To Sakura's confusion, he vanished from site. '_What is this!? Is it a variation to the attack…!?_' she thought. This threw her off completely, and threw her preparations completely out of the window, but just as her previous attack had been anticipated and foiled, she immediately felt the presence of her teacher's ki, as well as the built up ki for his attack. "Straight to HELL!!" came a scream from above. Just as fast and fierce as a thunderbolt from the heavens Akuma brought his hand down with the force of lightning right where Sakura stood. Just as his hand impacted the ground, the ki he'd stored previously was released in an incredible flash of light and a force that shook the ground that he stood. Again, to his surprise, Sakura stood a few yards away from the massive attack, though she didn't have much success in dodging this attack.

Falling down to one knee, Sakura clenched her chest as a large gash formed diagonally between her breasts. She had dodged the attack, but was a second too late. Appearing just feet in front of her, Akuma then spoke to her, "… You have dodged two of our style's greatest techniques in one battle… and have survived." Sakura's response was only her heavy breathing as the effects of the satsui no hadou began to subside, and the pain of her injury began to take hold of her body. The gash in her chest was deep; her blood was flowing freely from the wound and began to seep into the earth they stood upon. Her eyes began to grow heavy, as she realized the truth. Sakura was dying, but she hadn't yet accomplished her task in this world. She still had to meet Ryu again… She had to live long enough to see him just one more time… to show him that she was stronger… that she, too, could master this martial art, deadly as it was… but it wouldn't matter now… all her struggles… all her progress… would be for nothing… or would it…?

Suddenly, Sakura felt her center of gravity shift from her knees to her back. She was now lying down on her back, and her gi had been loosened up. '_Wha…? What's… happening…to me…_?' She felt something warm being packed on her bare chest. Gathering just enough strength to bring up her head and open her eyes, Sakura saw her mentor packing dirt onto her wound and using his obi and the top of her gi as a makeshift bandage. As she began to lose consciousness and coherency of the world around her, the last thing she could remember hearing was "For showing me your warrior's spirit by surviving… your reward is life…", and then everything faded to black…

--

The next morning, the trio woke up with their minds set for meeting and retrieving Sakura. They ate a light breakfast so as to not slow them down just in case the situation took a turn for the worst. After a brief moment to gather their thoughts and energies, Ken, Ryu, and Sean headed for the port town to set sail for the Malay Archipelago. To their surprise, the entire town was much busier than the last time they had visited, and all of the boats had left port, except the one that belonged to the ferryman that Ryu struck a deal with the day before. He sat patiently on his boat with his arms crossed, waiting for the three to show up. Ken was the first to speak. "Morning, old man. What's with all the ruckus out here?"

"Seems bad weather cleared up today. People no longer scared to fish."

" 'The bad weather's cleared up'…? Wait, does that mean we're too late…?" came a nervous question from Sean. Nobody answered, until Ryu asked the ferryman in Chinese, "The dark chi you mentioned yesterday… did it disappear?"

"No… The dark chi did not, in fact, disappear… Rather, it has moved."

"Moved? To where?"

The ferryman reached for a tobacco pipe from his side, lit it, and took a long drag; smoke rings formed from his mouth as he looked Ryu dead in the eyes and said, "North."

-End-

A/N: Many apologies to those who waited so long for me to release another chapter. I recently got back into college, and my time has just been all over the place. It seems that getting your life together can be more time-consuming than I thought. At any rate, I apologize for the delay, and I welcome you to the 6th chapter. Ok, for those who want to speculate on whether Ryu can speak Chinese or not, I say to you this: The man has traveled the world for years, fighting men and women on every corner of the earth. You'd think he'd pick up a language or two along way? Well, I don't have much to add, so I'll end it here. As always, thanks for reading, keep the comments coming (I am reading them from a serious point of view), and we'll see you in the next chapter.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: The following characters involved in this fanfic are not owned by me. They are the property of Capcom and/or their other respected owners. If I did then chances are that I'd have a more profitable job right now… Being poor sucks…

The Darkness Comes – Chapter 7

"… So it's come down to this, has it?" The darkened sky that blanketed the battlefield was only accentuated by an occasional flash of lightning. The two martial artists stood within breathing distance of each other, apparently not afraid of sizing the other person up. "The student versus the teacher…?"

"… I was never your student to begin with. I merely played along to satisfy your urge to shape me into what you thought I could be… This is your fault, you know."

"This situation was brought on by your actions and yours alone! Your choices led you here, and it is your choices that will ultimately bring about your downfall… It's not too late for you to change your mind, Sakura…"

"… I've made up my mind, Sensei…" Sakura said coldly as she assumed her stance. "... For what it's worth, I thank you for all that you've taught to me… For a while, it was kinda fun… Sorry…"

"… Me too…" With no more words to exchange, and a final flash of lightning to signal the start of the fight, the two disciples of one of the oldest forms of martial arts, wanting to finish the fight early, each prepared to execute their style's signature move.

"_Messatsu…!_"

"_Shinkuu..!_"

Their final words were drowned out by the sounds of their combined attacks converging upon each other, battling over which would dominate the other and take out its conjurer's enemy. A swirl of dark purple and light blue energy clashed and flared in an attempt to gain an edge with the results causing a massive explosion of energy and blinding light that engulfed the entire battlefield.

-------------------------------------

--A few days earlier--

"So we came all this way just to hear that we have to go back the way we came!?" Ken shouted in disbelief as they began to leave the port. They were all garbed in their gis ready to take on the task that laid before them only to find that their current target, or targets if they were too late, had moved on.

"In a nutshell… yes." Ryu said, with his eyes closed. In actuality he was just as disappointed as Ken was, but it was usually his job to be the calm one of the group. "They were here, but it seems they moved while we were asleep. We missed them by mere hours…"

"And so now, we gotta back-track all the way back to Japan!?"

"No, not Japan… He said 'North', but he didn't say exactly where… North could mean plenty of places, Ken."

"But, Ryu-san, we don't have the time or the resources to find out where they're heading to next… I mean, who do we know that has access to information that could change at a moment's notice like that?" Sean asked, feeling the disparity in the air.

"Sean, now's not the time to… wait a sec… Hey Ryu… I'm thinking of a person…" he said with a smile on his face. However Ryu remained silent to Ken's advances. He was not in the mood.

"Ooh! Ooh! I LOVE this game! Uh… Man or woman?" Sean piped up. Ken, smiling at Sean for picking up on his hint, replied with "Woman… 1"

"Alive or dead?"

Ken slapped Sean on the back of the head asking, "What good is she to us if she's dead, genius? She's alive… 2"

"Um… uh… Tall, medium, or short?

"Tall-- WAIT! … Medium… 3"

"You know I was going to wait until the question about what my defining features was, but you guys are a bit slow," said a female voice from behind the group. The three turned around to find a slightly annoyed Chinese woman wearing a blue cheongsam adorned with gold embroidery, and her hair in her signature white brocades. Ken immediately shouted "Thunder Th--" but cut himself off before finishing because of the angry look she shot at him. "I mean… Chun-li! How wonderful it is to see you! Eheheh…"

"Nice to see you too, Mr. Masters, Sean… Ryu…" Chun-li's eyes fell on Ryu when she caught a glimpse of him. Her annoyance then turned into a slight hint of sadness. "… You never call…"

"… I didn't want to complicate things."

"Complicate things…? I've fought with you guys since we first met years ago. I've helped you build and establish your dojo which you rarely have students attend… I gave you the intel that sent you on this suicide mission! The LEAST you could do is talk to me!"

"We're talking right now, aren't we?"

"I mean not like this! I want us to talk about other things besides fighting every once and a while!"

"Chun-li, I--"

"Do you even care about our relationship!?"

"Yes I do, but--"

"Do you even care about me, or my feelings!?"

"Of course I care about your fee--"

"But you won't think twice about calling me when you're so close to destruction, huh?"

"Yes, I know about the dangers of the situation, but--"

"But what!? What is it!? What could be more important than us!?"

"… Preventing an innocent girl from becoming a murderer…"

"… Sorry…"

"Yeah… I know…" An awkward silence surrounded the area as the two spent their time '_catching up'_. Wanting to break the ice a bit, Ken asked, "So… Chun-li… what brings you to this… this… uh… here?"

"… Huh? OH! I was… uh… oh yeah! I was visiting some friends of mine after a mission in the area, and I just so happened to find you guys out here…"

"… Um… Miss Li?" Sean decided to speak up this time. "You do know that this town is quite a ways away from any major cities, right?"

"And by '_quite a ways away_' we mean at least 50 miles to the next town…" Ken added.

"… I uh… That is to say… um…"

"Just say that you've been spying on us and have been tracking Akuma and you'll save us some time, Chun…" Ken finished. Chun-li sighed in defeat and said, "OK, ok… I've been keeping tabs on him since Ryu first called… or should I say '_tired to keep tabs on him_'… The guy is a beast; every time we get a fix on his location and take a snap shot of him, he looks right at the satellite before blasting it to pieces… It's creepy how he can sense them from so far…" she shuddered a bit remembering the last time she saw his face before he destroyed the satellite they were using.

"Ok… so that means while you were tracking us down, you've been keeping an eye on his movements!" Sean said, connecting the dots at his own pace.

"She just said that, Sean… Ok, so you've been taking pictures of where he goes. You guys over at Interpol figure out where he's going?" Ken asked, getting a bit impatient.

"As a matter of fact, we did." Chun-li replied, feeling confident in her skills and resources. "Before we shipped out to this location, we saw movement Northward… at the expense of a few satellites… That reminds me, Guile's gonna expect a phone call from some important people eventually… Anyway, after reaching Japan, he changed course and headed west to main land China. Our intel tells us that he was heading to a spot where he and his brother had first trained at in the past… Strange, though… Every time he moved, it was like he was deliberately showing us where he was going… you know… before he destroyed the satellite… Can't even imagine how much this is gonna cost in repairs alone…"

"So we have a destination… Do you know the name of the place?" Sean asked.

"I do… It's a place that the locals call Fen Yuan… '_The Graveyard_'… Very appropriate considering how many battles were fought there in the past... Can you really save her?"

"We don't have much of a choice, Chun. Sakura-chan is one of us… she's apart of the family. And family takes care of their own." Ken said with a stern look on his face. Sakura's well-being was always a priority since the beginning of this '_road-trip_'. There was no way he'd turn back now. Chun-li could see it in his eyes that he was serious enough to see this through. Glancing over at Ken's protégé, Sean, Chun-li could tell that he'd go wherever his master went whether he asked or not. And Ryu… there was no questioning his resolve once he'd made up his mind. "Alright then… so how about a ride issued by the government to Akuma's location?"

------------------------------------------

Stepping foot inside of his past training grounds, Akuma surveyed the area known as _Fen Yuan_ and took in a deep breath. The countless battles that were fought here left an eerie feeling in the area, as if the souls of the soldiers that fought and died there called out to anyone with a sliver of fighting potential in their body. Their cries of pain and anger seemed to fuel Akuma and energize him for whatever would come their way. Sakura, still wearing her dark-colored, blood-stained gi her new master gave her, had finally caught up with him. Out of breath, she clutched her chest due to her exhaustion and near-constant pain. Though the wound Akuma gave her had closed up and was still wrapped under some bandages they '_found_' along the way, Sakura still had trouble dealing with the pain the gash in her chest caused her.

"Ple… please… wait up… I… I can't… keep up with… with you…" she said in between gasps.

"You running out of breath only shows how weak you are, student… We've arrived."

"Re… really?" she asked. After catching her breath, she asked again, "Where exactly are we…?"

"… This was the place where I trained in years past… This is where you will be initiated into the breed of warriors this world desperately needs."

"Look, I never said I wanted to be a warrior… I just--"

"-- You chose the path of a warrior, and so you shall be nothing but! Your indecision will only bring hesitation, and in due time, your death! I have trained you in the arts of our teachers' teachers, and I will not have you waste my time!" His voice thundered throughout the area as he reprimanded his so called '_student_'.

"I'm, I'm sorry! I just… I'm just so out of it… This wound you gave me… I feel like it's sapping my strength with each step I take… I don't know how you do it." At the very mention of her wound, Sakura clutched again, this time harder than before. The pain was starting to take over her body much worse than it did before. It was almost paralyzing. Akuma, who saw his student gripped with pain, turned away, and in an act some would call out of character, began to offer her advice.

"… Close your eyes, Sakura. This area is overflowing with the ki of those who fought and died on these hallowed grounds. Their combined fighting spirit has culminated into what you can now feel all around us. It flows, affecting those who are attuned by it… All you need to do is breath…"

Following her mentor's cue, Sakura closed her eyes, lifted her head, and began to breathe deeply. At first, she couldn't feel anything at all, but after a while, she began to feel something… A slight sensation began to crawl from below her, all the way to the top of her head. She could feel the ki of the fallen warriors just as Akuma said. It filled her with such energy that she began to completely forget about the wound on her chest. '_This must be that fighting spirit that he keeps blabbing about… It feels… empowering…!_' she thought. Akuma, pleased that his student finally understood how their style was meant to be understood, crossed his arms and nodded in acceptance. Perhaps there was hope for this one after-all. After absorbing enough ki, Sakura stood up tall, and looked at her teacher square in his soul-less eyes.

"I'm… I'm going to the village we passed earlier… To get food…" she waited for Akuma to oppose the idea, but she was surprised that he did not but instead looked at her and said, "A warrior must eat, lest he be rendered useless on the battlefield… I prefer rice with roast duck." Sakura slightly giggled when Akuma gave her his request, and began to jog to the town they passed on their way to Fen Yuan.

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"Pssh! 'Ride issued by the government' my ass! … You figured with all the quote un-quote '_help_' she was offering us, she'd at least provide us a decent vehicle to where Akuma and Sakura are…" came a disappointed gruff from Ken. Apparently intel on Akuma's location was the only true help she could provide trio before emptying out her own bag of favors from Interpol. The only way she could make it up to them was offer to pay for local transportation out of her own wallet… which was looking pretty thin these days. "I mean, the bus!? It's gonna be at least a couple of days until we get there!"

"Patience, Ken… The fact that we actually know where they are should be enough for us."

"Yeah, but if we don't get there soon enough, we… Look, can't this bucket of bolts drive any faster!?" he screamed at the bus driver, who yelled back at Ken and, according to Ryu's translation , called him the equivalent of a rooster with an obsession to look as hens do. Ken, translating the insult into his own words, shouted even louder, "Who you calling a rooster, you cheap-hat-wearing, glorified bus driver! Come back here, and I'll show you who's a _chicken_!"

"Calm down, mas--… Ken! If we just stay positive on the matter, we can focus better on what to do when we get there…!" Sean said, trying to boost his teacher's confidence, and to prevent him from beating the bus driver. Ken looked at his pupil with eyes that could burn the sun, but shook his head and said, "… You're right… and me going psycho isn't going to get us there any faster… Fine… I'll try to keep calm."

"And…?" Ryu added.

"*sigh* _AND_ I won't kill the bus driver…"

"Yeah, that's the way! Just keep positive!"

The three sat in the rickety bus as it made its way down the path designated by Chun-li. Hours passed as they continued on their way towards Fen Yuan. It wasn't only until a few days later, did they finally arrive at a village at the foot of the area where they were to meet their destiny. "Finally!" Ken shouted, getting out of the bus and stretching. "I thought I was gonna go insane!"

"You're not the only one…" Ryu admitted. The three then turned towards the dirt hill that would lead them to their fated battle with Akuma and control for Sakura's soul. Nobody could say what was going to happen for sure when they got there, but everyone knew within the depths of their hearts that whatever may occur, a battle was definitely in their future.

-End-

A/N: Damned writer's block! I had this thing typed half-way but couldn't think about how to end it all. Still, I'm glad I was finally able to bring an end to this chapter. Sorry, no fights in this chapter either… *sadness* I'm not sure what the final fight will be like, but hopefully I can make it as good as possible for those who enjoy my fight sequences. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I'll see you in what might be the last chapter.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: The following characters involved in this fanfic are not owned by me. They are the property of Capcom and/or their other respected owners. If I did then coming up with an ending wouldn't be so hard…maybe

The Darkness Comes -- Chapter 8

"You know… despite the history of Akuma's former training grounds, the village here is really quite nice…" Sakura said to nobody in particular while she made her way back to the village she and her teacher had passed earlier. There were children playing in the fields alongside their mothers and fathers, while the elderly remained at their homes with stories that Sakura could only imagine were of the "Good ol' days". '_The "good ol' days", huh? I kinda miss being a regular girl before all this happened…_' she thought to herself. It seemed that in such a short time, Sakura had changed so much. Her body was more muscular, and her hair, due to it being not taken care of, was medium-length and dirty. "I wonder how long it's been since I took a decent bath… Maybe one of the villagers here knows where I can bathe a bit?"

Sakura made her way towards the village's Trading Post, and decided to try her hand at conversational Chinese, when a flash of red, white, and yellow suddenly caught her eye. '_Well, don't those colors seem familiar…_' she thought. A vision of her three comrades during her days of street fighting flashed in her mind, reminding her of where she came from as a person and as a martial artist. It was almost nostalgic to see those same colors after all this time, especially the red and white. The three colors shone brightly across the village grounds, and the figures they belonged to were too far for Sakura to make out.

Having her curiosity get the better of her, Sakura approached the three colors a bit more until one of the three figures' image began to clear up. In the back of her mind, she knew it was him, but her rational mind shouted at her that it was impossible for him to track her this far. But why was he here? Was it to exact revenge for the dojo she destroyed, for the lives she nearly took? … Was he here to silence her for delving into things he forbade himself to tell her? Whatever the case, his appearance here meant one thing indefinitely; he was here to see her. "Ryu…sama…" were the only words that escaped her mouth; but realizing they did, she quickly covered her mouth and retreated as fast as possible.

Across the way, the trio of Ryu, Sean, and Ken were asking the locals for information involving a dark man, and a young woman in her late teens. Their search brought them to the village eyes and ears, an old crone of a woman who was apparently the source of knowledge and information that passed in or out of the village. Ryu was acting as the translator as Sean and Ken asked their questions, which oddly enough, ended up being a Chinese-to-English version of 20 Questions. But when they got to question number 4, Ryu's ears suddenly perked up in mid-translation, and his head immediately turned towards a dirt path that led to stairs set inside of a hill. To his dismay, nobody stood where he looked. "Ryu-san? What's up?" Sean asked, when they noticed Ryu stopped translating for them.

"Yeah, Ryu. You look like something's got you spooked." Ken added. Ryu didn't answer quickly, but without turning back towards the group, he said, "I… I think I heard Sakura's voice…"

"S-sakura-chan!? You mean she's here!?"

"… I can't say for certain… but I know I heard Sakura's voice… She's close by." He said with determination in his voice. Turning quickly back to the old woman, he asked in Chinese "-- Miss, does that road lead to the training grounds known as "The Graveyard"?--" Looking sternly at the Japanese man that stood before her, the old woman replied, "--That road… leads to a place many have considered cursed ground… It draws people of all creeds for all sorts of reasons… If it is your destination, then yes… "The Graveyard" lies just up that path…--" That was more than enough for him. Without so much of a word, Ryu turned on his heels, and dashed towards the path that led to Fen Yuan, and hopefully, Sakura. Sean and Ken weren't too slow to follow, but Ken ran back to the old woman, and bowed before he caught up with his comrades. Their hearts pounded in unison as they raced up the ancient road that led to their fated destinies. They were close. Sakura was close. And no matter what was to happen in the events to follow, they knew in their hearts that they will not leave until they break Akuma's hold on their ally and companion, Sakura.

'_Sakura… we're almost there…_'Ryu thought as they got closer and closer to their destination. Feeling that he could see her at any moment, Ryu's pace suddenly quickened, and Sean and Ken found themselves in Ryu's dust as he hurried up the hill. "Ryu! Slow down! It's not like she's going anywhere…!" Ken yelled after Ryu, but Ryu paid no attention to his hails and only ran even faster. Sean and Ken weren't admittedly surprised at his sudden boost in his actions, but even they were starting to lose sight of him. "Fine!" Ken yelled one last time. "We'll catch up with you!"

"Understood!" Ryu finally yelled back, much to Ken's surprise.

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Meanwhile, at the top of the hill, near the center of Fen Yuan, Akuma stood, poised and ready to receive his meal he sent his student to retrieve him, when his ears twitched suddenly. Akuma could feel a slight change in the number of ki within the area. One wasn't as strong as the other two, but they all felt familiar. "… So, they've finally found us…" he said to himself aloud. Looking in the direction of the entrance, he could see Sakura appear just over the edge of the hilltop. "Akuma-san! Akuma-san!" she yelled, but Akuma stopped her by raising her palm. "You need not say anything, my pupil. I know of their arrival."

"B-b-but what should I do…!? I'm not ready to see Ryu-sama--" Her use of honorifics in Ryu's name brought a slight rise in Akuma's ki which Sakura could sense due to her training. So she changed it before continuing. "… Ryu… san… I don't think I can face him yet!" Akuma stared at his student with disappointment in his eyes. "A warrior never truly knows what to expect when walking onto a new battlefield. You will know what to do when it comes to you; but above all else, you must never hesitate." "…Yes… sensei…" Sakura said after taking a deep breath to calm herself, after which she and her teacher then stood next to each other, facing the entrance to Fen Yuan. They wouldn't have to wait long for Ryu's arrival.

'_Almost there… almost there…!_' Ryu shouted in his mind as he got closer to the top of the hill, and his encounter with Sakura. Finally, after what seemed like months of traveling, Ryu came face to face with the very person he'd been searching for. "Sakura…" There she was, standing there, waiting for Ryu to approach her. Taking the inaudible hint for him to come nearer, Ryu slowly walked to where Sakura stood, completely in a daze at her mere appearance and the fact that she stood before him once again. She'd changed so much, but to him, she was still Sakura. "Sakura…" he said again, oblivious to the fact that she stood next to the one man he never wanted to encounter again. Akuma, sensing that Ryu's guard was nowhere to be found, decided to take the reunion in a different direction. Suddenly dematerializing from where Sakura stood, Akuma appeared 2 feet infront of Ryu, spun quickly on his heels, and elbowed Ryu on his left cheek, sending him to the ground. Sakura, seeing Ryu hurt, almost called out to him, but found herself stopping herself unconsciously. '_Why'd I have to promise him that when I first came to him!?_' she yelled at herself, remembering what Akuma made her promise before they started training.

"There will be a time when he will come looking for you. What he does when that happens will be determined by fate, but you are forbidden to call his name even once during the entire ordeal. Is that understood?" Akuma stated infront of a confused and shocked Sakura.

----------------------------------------------------

"W-what!? What do you mean, 'I'm forbidden to call his name even once'!?"

"I also forbid you from showing any emotion while he and his comrades are there…"

"What are these weird demands, all of a sudden!? I can't call out to him, and I can't even show any emotion while he's there!? The only reason I came here was so that I could show Ryu-sama that I can be a capable fighter too!" Akuma wasn't going to take this 'disrespect' any longer from someone he was willing to teach. His ki suddenly began to manifest itself all over his body, covering it in a crimson aura.

"… above all else, you will NEVER use -sama for his name while you are under my tutelage! You giving another man a title greater than your teacher is the utmost intolerable sin you can commit against me! You will never speak to him in high regards for as long as I am your instructor!"

"Y…yes… sensei… But why am I not even to show the slightest feelings for when he sees me…!?"

"Simple… Your reason for coming to me was to increase your strength and skill. How will you be able to bring forth your full potential when your emotions are clouding your mind?"

"I… I'm sure I would be able to--"

"To what? Focus? How can you focus on the battle, when you're thoughts are filled with reuniting with him? Either you agree to these terms in order for you to receive my training, or I kill you where you stand and send your corpse to your 'precious Ryu'. Your choice should be obvious." And he was right… death would certainly hamper her chances of reuniting with Ryu if that was ever going to be possible again… but in exchange she'd have to close out any and all emotions for him. "… Alright."

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'_I'm such an idiot to agree to those conditions…_' she thought to herself, but remained stone-faced just as her teacher instructed her to do so. Meanwhile, Akuma stood over the knocked over body of Ryu, who had just now noticed Akuma's presence standing above him.

"Pathetic… your former student has more fight than you do now, boy." Akuma said allowing Ryu time to get up and face him.

"Unlike you, I don't live to fight."

"Liar!" Akuma phased out of sight once again, and reappeared behind Ryu. Ryu, finally ready to defend himself, turned and raised his leg to counter Akuma's roundhouse kick to Ryu's lowe back. After blocking the attack, Ryu unleashed a small flurry of punches aimed at Akuma's head. Akuma, without so much as moving his legs an inch from where they were, bobbed and weaved past each fist that flew his way. Ending his futile, attack, Ryu then attempted to surprise Akuma with a hard right hook, which Akuma ducked under. This gave Ryu his chance to counter. "_Shoryuken_!" he shouted, balancing out his power and speed to deliver a dragon punch that would connect with Akuma's chin… but he only ended up hitting air. Akuma had sensed Ryu's intent on countering and had teleported back to where Sakura stood silently, watching her teacher and former teacher fight. Akuma continued with his accusation. "You claim you do not live to fight, yet you train your body day in and day out, but for what!?"

"I train every day so that I could be prepared!"

"Prepared to do what, boy!?"

"Prepared to resist those who would bring about useless deaths to further their own schemes. Men who think of nothing beyond their fists besides the vision of their broken opponent. Men like you."

"Hmph… a fool's aspiration." Akuma said in protest. Crossing his arms, he could only find disgust in Ryu, who would still not tap into the potential that laid within him.

"Ryu!!!" came a yell from behind. Ryu, turned his head slightly to see that Sean and Ken had finally caught up with him. Ken, with a disappointed look on his face said, "Ryu, you jerk. I thought we were going to do this together!" Ryu smirked, and replied, "Sorry, but Akuma got impatient..."

"Seems to me like that guy doesn't have much patience at all…" Sean said, noticing the soulless eyes that belonged to Akuma. "Well, we're not that patient either. Release Sakura-chan at once!"

"_Release_?" Akuma chuckled at the word. "Boy you have no idea of how we got here today, do you? She came her of her own free will. There was hardly any coercion on my part. From the day when the satsui no hadou had first began to take hold of her, she'd been calling out to me all along. I'm surprised that you haven't been called to me, yellow-one."

"Y-yellow!? I'll show you who's yellow, you eyebrow-less freak show!" Sean was a bit tired from playing the second-banana to the other guys in the group, but instead of rushing forward, he stood his ground. Though he was angry, Sean was smart enough to know that if he had taken on Akuma by himself, he'd be slaughtered.

"You all seem eager for action… and admirable trait… then let us not delay the inevitable any longer. Sakura! Show them the fruits of our labor…!"

"Yes… sensei." Sakura said in a monotone voice.

"Guys, remember that our goal here is to bring Sakura back… or die trying." Ryu said to the trio as they all lined up. "But whatever happens on this day… know that it's been an honor knowing each of you."

"Yeah… you too, buddy." Ken agreed.

"My thoughts exactly, Ryu-san." Sean added. "Let's all just hope for the best."

"Hmph... 'hope' is it? Let's see how long you all survive on hope alone…!" Akuma said, getting into his stance, at which point, the rest of the descendants of Shotokhan-ryuu assumed their stances as well. The day had finally come. The battle that would decide Sakura's future.

-End-

A/N: Finally had a chance to work on this chapter after a while… speaking of which, I need to work on my other story, (Love Eternal…?) but every time I do finish the chapter for that one, something… happens… I don't know… maybe the story is cursed or something… This was originally going to be the last chapter of this story, but I decided to extend it into another chapter or two. More fighting in the next chapter (or two) I promise!


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